What is the most important thing to know about maintaining the Abrams M1A2?

Ford: The most important thing to know about the maintenance of tanks is that they are very big and very expensive. Even the smallest components can cost a lot more than the average military vehicle, which means it's that much more important to get the maintenance on them right.

For example, the operation we recently did to put a turret back on a tank had to be completed with extreme care and precision as not to damage the vehicle. The cost of error is one of those things you can't help but to think about when planning maintenance on these.